Fiji’s Minister for Fisheries Semi Koroilavesau says there is ongoing work being carried out with advanced and developed bilateral partners for fishing fleet to meet PAFCO’s albacore demands.
“Once Fiji gains access to PNA (Parties to Nauru Agreement) waters, we will need to have a fleet that has the capacity to secure raw materials,” Mr Koroilavesau said.
“With ongoing discussions, we are looking to secure Purse seines vessels and mother ships – that joint venture arrangement with our bilateral partners. This will help us secure tuna from outside Fiji.”
He told parliament this week that one of the best options that the Ministry of Fisheries was working on was the development of multipurpose fishing port.
He said after clearly assessing the present annual stock and the number of fishing vessels needed to supply raw material – not just to PAFCO but other processing facilities – “it has been identified that Fiji needs to attract at least 250 vessels to Fiji to meet the current demand”.
“These vessels do not need to fish in our EEZ but we are trying to attract them to unload their catch in Fiji.
“The ministry is currently conducting ongoing discussions with the private sector and the investors to help realise this important initiative.
“In a nutshell, it is important to understand that the process of securing raw materials for PAFCO is a tough one. For one, the fish that we are looking for to secure is not ours.
“Through our fishing brokers FCF (noted Fong Chun Formosa), we had been able to secure 19,000 metric tonnes for our production lines. What we are trying to do now is provide a market and a fleet friendly environment to have meet the current shortfall in raw materials.
“The Ministry of Fisheries will continue to work closely with line ministries on this and we hope to progress this work effectively.”
He had said that the Fiji needed to attract more fishing vessels to come to Fiji and unload more tuna for PAFCO and other value adding companies.
